Genesis 20:16

20:16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given a thousand pieces of silver 1  to your ‘brother.’ 2  This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you.” 3 

Genesis 23:16

23:16 So Abraham agreed to Ephron’s price 4  and weighed 5  out for him 6  the price 7  that Ephron had quoted 8  in the hearing of the sons of Heth – 400 pieces of silver, according to the standard measurement at the time. 9 

Genesis 24:35

24:35 “The Lord has richly blessed my master and he has become very wealthy. 10  The Lord 11  has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys.

Genesis 37:28

37:28 So when the Midianite 12  merchants passed by, Joseph’s brothers pulled 13  him 14  out of the cistern and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. The Ishmaelites 15  then took Joseph to Egypt.

Genesis 44:2

44:2 Then put 16  my cup – the silver cup – in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the money for his grain.” He did as Joseph instructed. 17 

Genesis 44:8

44:8 Look, the money that we found in the mouths of our sacks we brought back to you from the land of Canaan. Why then would we steal silver or gold from your master’s house?

1 sn A thousand pieces [Heb “shekels”] of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 11.5 kilograms, or 400 ounces (about 25 pounds).

2 sn To your ‘brother.’ Note the way that the king refers to Abraham. Was he being sarcastic? It was surely a rebuke to Sarah. What is amazing is how patient this king was. It is proof that the fear of God was in that place, contrary to what Abraham believed (see v. 11).

3 tn Heb “Look, it is for you a covering of the eyes, for all who are with you, and with all, and you are set right.” The exact meaning of the statement is unclear. Apparently it means that the gift of money somehow exonerates her in other people’s eyes. They will not look on her as compromised (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:74).

4 tn Heb “listened to Ephron.”

5 tn Heb “and Abraham weighed out.”

6 tn Heb “to Ephron.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

7 tn Heb “silver.”

8 tn Heb “that he had spoken.” The referent (Ephron) has been specified here in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

9 tn Heb “passing for the merchant.” The final clause affirms that the measurement of silver was according to the standards used by the merchants of the time.

10 tn Heb “great.” In this context the statement refers primarily to Abraham’s material wealth, although reputation and influence are not excluded.

11 tn Heb “and he.” The referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

12 sn On the close relationship between Ishmaelites (v. 25) and Midianites, see Judg 8:24.

13 tn Heb “they drew and they lifted up.” The referent (Joseph’s brothers) has been specified in the translation for clarity; otherwise the reader might assume the Midianites had pulled Joseph from the cistern (but cf. NAB).

14 tn Heb “Joseph” (both here and in the following clause); the proper name has been replaced both times by the pronoun “him” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

15 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Ishmaelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

16 tn The imperfect verbal form is used here to express Joseph’s instructions.

17 tn Heb “and he did according to the word of Joseph which he spoke.”